Boston College coach Steve Donahue was disappointed things got away from his club in the first half. But he understood he's still in the early stages of a rebuilding project. "We're in a growth mode," he said. "We're not there yet."

No not yet Woder Boy your almost there, not this year not next ... Scrub BC could go all the way ... 1-2 in the loser round..

"I told them tonight I'm proud of them," Kelly said. "I voted them No. 1 for a reason, because I think they're the best team in the country. I think they played like that tonight."

The Fighting Irish were in third place in last week's BCS standings, but likely will move up after Kansas State, which was No. 1, lost 52-24 to Baylor and Oregon, which was in second, lost to Stanford 17-14 in overtime.

If Notre Dame manages to beat Southern California next week, it could wind up in a BCS title game against Alabama, now No. 4 in those rankings. Notre Dame won the national championship in 1973 when it upset the undefeated Crimson Tide 24-23 in the Sugar Bowl.